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Cohort study
Further research supports association between antidepressant use and elevated risk of postpartum haemorrhage
  1. Jane B Ford1,2
  1. 1Clinical and Population Perinatal Health Research, Kolling Institute, Northern Sydney Local Health District, Sydney, Australia;
  2. 2Sydney Medical School Northern, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
  1. Correspondence to : Associate Professor Jane B Ford, Clinical and Population Perinatal Health Research, c/- University Dept of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, 2006, Australia; jane.ford{at}sydney.edu.au

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Commentary on: Grzeskowiak LE, McBain R, Dekker GA, et al. Antidepressant use in late gestation and risk of postpartum haemorrhage: a retrospective cohort study. BJOG 2016;123(12):1929–36.

Implications for practice and research

  • The consistently elevated risk of postpartum haemorrhage in the setting of antidepressant use underscores the importance of consideration of appropriate place of birth for exposed women.

  • Further research exploring antidepressant use rather than supply and untangling critical time periods of exposure is warranted.

Context

Postpartum haemorrhage (PPH) is increasing in high-resource countries and increased rates cannot be explained by factors such as increasing maternal age and caesarean section rates.1 A few studies have demonstrated an increased risk of PPH in the setting of antidepressant use which is also increasing. These studies have been limited by being conducted among specialised populations (eg, low-income women), relying on prescription date or supply rather than antidepressant use and …

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Footnotes

  • Funding Australian Research Council (grant number Future Fellowship #FT120100069).

  • Competing interests None declared.

  • Provenance and peer review Commissioned; internally peer reviewed.